Sen. Pia Cayetano wants to know why PH dragon boat team is "being denied the support they deserve," lawmakers to investigate PSC and POC

(SPOT.ph) Solons from the House of Representatives and the Senate plan to launch an investigation regarding the apparent lack of support for the Philippine Dragon Boat Federation from sports organizations like the Philippine Olympic Committee (PSC), the Philippine Sports Commission (POC), and the National Sports Association, reports ABS-CBN News. The Philippine Dragon Boat Team arrived in Manila fresh from a five-gold win at the International Dragon Boat World Championships in Tampa, Florida.

Though Malacañang congratulated the team, Sen. Pia Cayetano questioned why the group remains unaccredited. "We want to find out (why) our Philippine Dragon Boat Team, which is acknowledged as one of the best and one of the most feared in international competitions, is not recognized as national athletes and are being denied the support they deserve in their very own country," she said in an Interaksyon report. Cayetano's newly composed resolution appeals for the Senate to investigate the reasons behind the team's non-accreditation. Senators Kiko Pangilinan and Gregorio Honasan also filed resolutions recognizing the achievements of the team.

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Cayetano pinned the blame on politics. "Honestly, tingin ko maraming bahid ng politika (I think it has something to do with politics)... It boils down to not willing to support a particular athlete or a particular team dahil bata ng iba ’yon (because he or they are sponsored by someone else)," she told ABS-CBN News. Bayaning Atleta Partylist Rep. Mark Sambar is also dismayed by the matter. In the same report, he said, "It's saddening kasi you know that we have a lot of athletes there that are so good and so talented but they cannot rise to that level kasi they're being held back by some people."